Study on the Electrical Arc Ablation Performance of Al₂O₃ Reinforced Cu-Matrix Composites

Abstract

The Al2O3 particle reinforced Cu-based composites (Al2O3/Cu) were prepared by internal oxidation technology. The electrical arc ablation performance of Al2O3/Cu composite was compared with copper H62 through a series of ablation experiments. The results indicate that both the quality lost and ablation diameter of copper H62 samples are larger than those of Al2O3/Cu composites in condition of the same ablating current. The large ablation pits observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) indicated that the arc ablation of copper H62 is concentrate and serious. The result of energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) shows that the molten copper alloy of H62 has been transferred and sprayed. However, the arc ablation pits of Al2O3/Cu composites are dispersing and slight. The transferring and spaying material of Al2O3/Cu composite is mainly from Cu-matrix. The anchoring effect and protection function of the uniformly dispersing Al2O3 grains, which are executed onto the Cu-matrix, has been considered to contribute to the excellent arc ablation performance of composite Al2O3/Cu.

Influence of service parameters on the current-carrying tribological properties of CF-Al2O3/Cu composites

“…At the same time, the carbon fibers on the composite surface are ground down to a finer size under high loads. Due to the poor arc erosion resistance of brass (Li et al , 2012), the introduction of current leads to the rapid loss of the adhesive layer. In addition, the appearance of spalling pits and abrasive wear further increases the wear rate of the composite.…”